Kelli Potter’s Facing a $217K Judgment — and Creditors Are Looking at Her Bank Accounts

Complex reports that Real Housewives of Atlanta’s Kelli Potter — formerly Kelli Ferrell — is facing a six-figure default judgment tied to Nana’s Chicken & Waffles, with creditors now subpoenaing banks to see what can be seized. TMZ obtained the legal documents: ARF Financial won after neither Potter nor the LLC responded to the lawsuit. The numbers are specific — about $217,370 in principal plus attorney’s fees — and they land right as Phaedra Parks is calling this season “rich broke” on a podcast. Here’s the debt, the divorce-loan defense, the closed Sandy Springs location, and why those $70,000 teeth keep coming back up.

Phaedra Called It Before Complex Dropped the Paperwork

So, Phaedra said it on camera this past week — girl, instead of dropping nearly $70,000 on new teeth, you would’ve been better off with Crest Whitestrips and putting the rest toward your bills. That wasn’t random shade; it was a castmate reading the room before the paperwork caught up. According to Complex, a judge entered a default judgment for ARF Financial after Kelli Potter and Nana’s Chicken & Waffles LLC didn’t file a response. The judgment includes $217,370.21 in principal damages plus $4,723.70 in attorney’s fees, court costs, and post-judgment interest. The creditor has already issued subpoenas to multiple banks to find accounts that can be seized. Look, she’s hinted at money stress on the show and still filmed the $8,500 fashion flex that had everybody saying the looks weren’t fashioning. Here’s the thing — what we watched months ago on RHOA is now sitting in court paper. Just saying.

Served or Not Served — the Court Already Moved

A representative for Potter told TMZ the dispute comes from a business loan taken out during her marriage to ex-husband Mark Farrell, and that both were included in the default judgment. The spokesperson said Potter argued in divorce proceedings that Farrell should carry the debt, and added: “We are confident that this legal matter will be rightfully resolved, but as of now, Kelly hasn’t been officially served.” I’m keeping an open mind on the divorce math — yes, bad marriages leave financial residue — but according to the courts as reported, she was served and didn’t respond in time. That’s how you get a default judgment. Do you guys understand what that means? Silence in a lawsuit isn’t strategy; it’s how creditors get to knock on bank doors. Sidebar — she’s also been battling Farrell over child support, which is why Phaedra took her on pro bono. I have to be real with you guys: if I’m doing free legal work for you and you still film a $70K teeth flex, that’s a slap in the face energy. In all fairness, dental work may have been discounted or promotional — callers flagged that she’s been pushing the dentist at the Atlanta airport and on social — but the optics still land messy.

The Second Location Opened on Camera. It’s Closed Off Camera.

Complex notes the collection fight arrives during what was supposed to be a brand expansion. Earlier this year Potter opened a second Nana’s Chicken & Waffles in Sandy Springs — a milestone that became part of her RHOA storyline — and she talked about more space, more menu options, Disney activations, and chasing corporate partnerships. She stressed she’s pouring into a brick-and-mortar business beyond reality TV. Well, that Sandy Springs location has since closed. Drew Sidora even showed up on camera saying she came for chicken and waffles, not to get the kids to school on time — and now the spot isn’t open. I’m not surprised. A lot of y’all who know Sandy Springs said that wasn’t the lane for chicken and waffles; others argued empty lanes can be opportunity. Either way, watching the grand-opening arc while the doors are shut off-camera is peak Housewives math. Two things can be true: entrepreneurship is hard, and filming “we’re expanding” while creditors are hunting accounts is not a good look.

Teeth, Jarvis, and the “Rich Broke” Season

Phaedra told Betches the season had a lot of “rich broke” going on — and Kelli’s storyline is sitting right in that lane next to Pinky Cole navigating bankruptcy optics. Here’s the thing: no matter how terrible an ex may have been, filming scenes about Jarvis paying for new teeth because you’re insecure about your smile — while child support, housing stability for your kids, and a six-figure judgment are in the background — reads irresponsible. You’re not insecure that the support isn’t landing. You’re insecure about the veneers. We can’t prove every private detail of the Farrell dispute from a Complex write-up, and her team says they’re confident it’ll resolve. But the receipts on the judgment are public. How do you guys feel about that — should Bravo keep airing the expansion flex while the second location is closed and banks are getting subpoenas, or is this exactly the “rich broke” mess Phaedra already named? We shall see. Here we go.

Disclaimer: This post is based on publicly available information and credited sources. All allegations are unproven